In 2011, democratic uprisings rose independently and spread across the Arab world, thanks, in part to the proliferation of social media and world class journalism from Al Jazeera Media Network. Al Jazeera launched in 1996 following the closure of the first BBC Arabic language television station. The Emir of Qatar provided a $137 million loan to sustain the news channel through its first five years.

2016 marks the 20 year anniversary of Al Jazeera and while its recent attempt to reach a US cable market have failed, it'll be better off in the long run if it expands its online digital delivery shown below. Cable is dead, anyway.

Since I began watching around 5 years ago, Al Jazeera has profoundly impacted how I see the world with its countless programs and documentaries about the downtrodden and powerless.

There is a fight over the heart of Islam and Muslims need to be deeply invested in that fight. I'm thankful to Qatar for fighting the defacto propaganda war, raging against western media (insert Fox News) to provide in-depth, fact-based reporting through Al Jazeera, but the Qatar Armed Forces could spend more of their GDP on their armed forces and contribute boots on the ground.